Most of you may already know that HTX’s key role in society is to develop cutting-edge science and technology innovations to force multiply the Home Team and keep Singapore safe and secure.
But did you know that we also do much more than that?
Besides coming up with new and exciting tech, HTX also works behind the scenes to ensure that Home Team assets are kept in good shape and always ready to go, and the unsung heroes behind this endeavour are none other than the Xponents from our Capability Sustainment pillar.
Business as usual
The Home Team works round the clock to ensure public safety. But to do this, all assets used by the HTDs – be it vehicles, systems, networks or buildings – need to be at their best in terms of operational availability, efficiency and effectiveness.
And that’s exactly what HTX’s Capability Sustainment teams ensure.
This is how HTX Deputy Chief Executive of Operations Chen Yeang Tat describes Capability Sustainment:
Keeping track of the “health” of Home Team assets is no joking matter, and this is why there isn’t just one, or two, but five teams involved. Together, they serve as the guardians of the Home Team’s buildings, Information & Communications Technology (ICT) infrastructure, operations systems, and platform systems, which include vehicles and weapons.
HTX’s Capability Sustainment pillar even has a team dedicated to enterprise risk management, workplace safety!
(Infographic: HTX)
1. Building & Infrastructure
This team develops and enhances Home Team facilities across the nation, whether on land or at sea — including maritime infrastructure such as sea-based barriers that keep intruders out.
One of its primary roles is to provide technical guidance on infrastructure design to ensure that users’ needs are met, and that Home Team buildings are as resilient and sustainable as possible.
As HTX is a technology agency, the Building & Infrastructure team frequently leverages technology to address challenges. For example, they deploy ultrasonic snake repellents at checkpoints and use drones to clean building façades.
Building & Infrastructure’s Electrical team inspecting a meter installation with users from the Singapore Police Force. (Photo: HTX/Toy Jia Ling)
Speaking of challenges, one of the biggest currently faced by the team is the redevelopment of Singapore’s well-known Woodlands Checkpoint (WCP), one of the world’s busiest land checkpoints handling at least 300,000 travellers daily.
To address chronic congestion and cater to the growing number of travellers — expected to reach 400,000 a day by 2050 — the team is working closely with the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) and nature groups. This collaboration focuses on constructing a new extension to significantly increase clearance capacity for cargo and passenger vehicles, retrofitting existing infrastructure, and installing additional clearance facilities.
2. ICT Infrastructure
An Xponent from ICT Infrastructure leads an on-site inspection of equipment at a Home Team data centre. (Photo: HTX)
Without the support of the ICT Infrastructure team, systems at Singapore’s air, land, and sea checkpoints wouldn’t function, national emergency hotlines would be unreachable, and data centres could not operate.
These Xponents really know their stuff. In 2022, the ICT Infrastructure team revamped the wide area network (WAN) encryption and routing strategy and enhanced network reliability and performance for the entire Singapore Police Force (SPF).
Recently, they completed the provision to build a data centre to leverage HTX’s growing AI infrastructure, which will support the creation of exciting AI products in the coming years.
3. Operations Systems
As the primary guardians of the Home Team’s data systems, the Ops Systems team provides swift responses to cybersecurity incidents and remains prepared for cyber threats through various measures, including conducting annual cybersecurity exercises for the whole of government (WOG).
Xponents from Ops Systems monitor the health of the Home Team’s systems at the Home Team Security Operations Centre (HTSOC). (Photo: HTX)
Ops Systems also collaborates extensively with other divisions within HTX’s Capability Sustainment family on new projects related to building robust network infrastructures to support advanced cyber operations and improve overall security posture.
Such initiatives involve meticulous planning and execution and are critical for enabling all users to access the secure network, facilitating smooth communication and data transfer within the WOG.
In addition, Ops Systems is responsible for setting up command posts across Singapore, including cross-agency command posts during major events such as the NDP. These command posts provide Home Team officers with a comprehensive overview of the situation on the ground, enabling them to respond swiftly to potential threats.
Setting up these command posts presents several challenges, particularly in establishing secure IT networks that facilitate communication between various SPF divisions. Prior to setup, the team conducts site surveys with vendors to familiarise themselves with the location and identify potential challenges that may arise, before designing and implementing technical workarounds to resolve these challenges swiftly as a team.
The job can sometimes be thankless, but it is always critical to public safety. So, we need people who understand and appreciate how critical our role is, even when it isn’t always visible. We need people who value our mission.
4. Platform Systems
Vehicles and vessels are an indispensable part of the Home Team’s assets. After all, how else would casualties be transported to a hospital or hostile threats interdicted in Singapore’s territorial waters?
At Platform Systems, Xponents ensure that all physical assets used by the Home Team are in the right condition to support operations. (Photo: HTX)
And this is exactly why the Platform Systems team is crucial. Besides ensuring that vehicles and vessels are well-maintained and always in tip-top condition, the team also actively explores the latest technologies to find ways to augment the current fleet.
Of equal importance to ensuring the success of the Home Team’s operations, the team also manages specialised equipment such as those used by SPF and SCDF for public security, tactical operations, firefighting, medical, HAZMAT (hazardous materials) and rescue, as well as lethal and non-lethal armaments used by the SPF and the Singapore Prison Service (SPS).
5. Sustainment Transformation & Risk Management Office (STRMO)
Within five years, Xponents from the STRMO have not only built HTX’s ERM framework from scratch, but also advanced the agency from being “risk aware” to “risk enabled”.
In other words, they have managed to shift HTX from a position of being able to identify and understand risks to one that embeds risk management in all its processes for informed decision-making.
Beyond developing and implementing strategic ERM policies within HTX, STRMO also organises activities with partners like Human Resources, such as industry sharing sessions for Xponents to learn about best practices in risk management. (Photo: HTX/Pauline Mah)
Harmonising diverse perspectives and aligning operational priorities across HTX requires constant communication with every stakeholder involved, understanding their constraints and getting their buy-in. When they’re not busy doing that, the STRMO team ensures HTX’s Workplace Safety, Health and Security (WSHS) policies and safeguards are in place.
Bent on breaking convention, the team aims to transform the way Xponents learn about workplace safety through SafeXplorer, an interactive digital training programme that replicates actual HTX workspaces in immersive 3D environments.
Innovative thinking
But Capability Sustainment is not just about maintaining the status quo. At the heart of the pillar lies a common goal of driving technological innovation to achieve greater resilience and readiness in Singapore’s fast-evolving public safety landscape.
To this end, the Capability Sustainment Innovation Day is held biennially to honour the latest innovative pitches and projects from each team. The 2024 edition was an inspiring event, with smart, scalable and sustainable technological innovations on full display.
The Capability Sustainment pillar’s biggest innovation achievement to date?
That would certainly have to be the Home Team Sustainment Centre (HTSC), a first-of-its-kind, future-ready centralised hub, that was launched in 2024 to unite and oversee all facets of the pillar’s operations.
Find out more about this cutting-edge facility here!
